This invention relates to a transport of the type that includes both a track unit and a vehicle unit interconnected by a drive chain. The vehicle unit is designed to include a compartment or a cab for transport of cargo or individuals and is particularly suited for high rise buildings that exceed a hundred floors in height. The vehicle unit is designed to transport the compartment or cab along a track that may vary from horizontal, vertical, or inclined with the compartment maintaining a ground aligned orientation. Because of the desirability of utilizing the transport as a passenger carrying system, additional features are included such as a gyroscope to maintain the correct orientation for passenger comfort. In its preferred use as a passenger transport for tall buildings, the system is adaptable to building designs that have other than customary vertical shaft systems that limit the design and construction of the building itself.
In ultra tall buildings, the internal transportation system becomes extremely complexed. Sufficient transport vehicles be provided to access the numerous floors, creating problems of design of express systems and local systems. The height itself causes structural problems in conventional cable systems. For example, after a large number of floors, the weight of the cable itself becomes a burden. Additionally, since the maximum speed of comfortable travel is limited to approximately 20 miles per hour, the conventional approach is to use a greater number of lower floor elevators, including express elevators to what is conveniently called a sky lobby, where patrons transfer to secondary elevator systems for accessing higher floors. The time necessary to travel to upper floors increase dramatically.
The improved transport of this invention is feasible for use in a variety of situations, such as in deep shaft mining where combinations of horizontal, inclined and vertical travel is desired or in a more sophisticated use as a passenger transport system in multi-floor buildings where a number of floors makes impracticable conventional systems. Although prior art self propelled vehicle systems have been proposed for use in environments as contemplated herein, such systems have not fully satisfied the criteria of safety and stability that render them suitable for such varied applications as a high volume cargo transport and a passenger elevator.